If you are an overworked and stressed doctor who wonders if there is anything you could do to be happier, more relaxed and have enough time to do things for yourself, instead of allowing the monster that is Medicine, eat you up, then here are some suggestions for you.

You can’t go on like this, because if you do then something has to give and that something will be your personal health and well-being so that you are unable to function as a doctor efficiently and effectively any more. This will impact on your ability as a doctor and the way you feel about your patients and your medical work and eventually can lead to burn out and having to leave the profession on health grounds.

Not only your medical work, but your life in general already can be affected when you are on the go all the time. This results in you finding it difficult to make decisions or decide what is best for your life now. Your relationships suffer and your self-care is decreased and you will feel frustrated and ineffectual. You may long to take some ‘time out’ but don’t know how or what to do!

What can you do to change your situation?

You could:

Leave the Medical profession completely, which might solve the problem yet feel anxious about what to do instead

Consider retirement yet wonder if you will be bored without the routine of work

Continue as a doctor and try to improve your work-life balance but don’t know how to

Free up more time for you – but don’t believe it is possible

Carry on as you are until you cannot cope any more and become completely burnt out

What could happen if you don’t care for yourself more?

You will:

Become more stressed and unhappy;

Get fully burnt out;

Be unable to enjoy Medicine any more;

Become confused about what to do next…….

You long for some space and time to:

decide what to do for you

discover for yourself that it is possible to be a doctor and live your life in whatever way you want…..

Life doesn’t have to be like that for you….

You can be:

more relaxed

refreshed

find answers to your dilemmas

decide on steps to move forward…..

But HOW can you achieve this? You must:

nurture yourself because when you look after yourself you can better look after your patients

relax, reflect so that you can make decisions calmly and in an informed way

make new connections with parts of yourself which have been neglected for a while so that you become a whole person again, by exercising, stretching, being creative

connect with nature so that you find something beyond your day to day work

find a new way forward, which you hadn’t discovered before so that you are more confident about changes you decide to make

There is also a once only opportunity to discover new ways to connect and change in beautiful West Cornwall, UK, so you can be refreshed, relaxed and make decisions about what to do next.

You will experience being able to Connect and Change with:

Your body which will become energised, exercised and stretched with walking, yoga, relaxation….

Your mind, to be able to think more clearly as you have time to consider what to do next in your life as you spend time in nature, by the sea, learn about and experience mindfulness… and have the chance to use me and others as a sounding board to discover your own solutions.

Your emotions which will become calmer as you put things into proportion while watching the ocean in an area of outstanding natural beauty and have the opportunity for personal reflection and discussion with other medics and experience coaching as a sounding board for your thoughts and ideas.

Your creativity whichwill be awakened as you have permission to have fun and discover new ways to express yourself through art and music, and discover something new about yourself.

Your enjoyment which will be increased….as you enjoy bird watching, swimming, ….conversations….laughing….staying in a beautiful place just minutes from the sea, so you can relax and refresh your mind, body and spirit; and experience a day foraging (with an expert) for wild food then cooking and feasting on it!

When you connect with new experiences you will be able to make the changes you want and discover which direction to take next, within or out of the Medical profession, in order to live the life you truly want.

To take some time out just for you and discover what to do, for yourself, when you connect with parts of yourself you may have neglected…. find out more here:

Many people find joining a group for support through change is beneficial. Would a group for doctors who want your lives to be much, much better also work?

It might be useful for doctors who:

have read about personal development

haven’t made the changes they want yet

Doctors might resist joining a group because they:

never have enough time

have not been fitting in much apart from work into their day.

find that their family complains they are never at home

can’t remember when they last had a walk, went to the theatre or saw a film…….

Being part of a supportive group is for you if you want to:

Make changes in your life

Have more time

Stop feeling stressed

Become fitter

Be happier

Recognise you have choices

Enjoy the synergy and support of a group.

Joining a group can be an opportunity for support, encouragement and motivation. You may be able to meet each other face to face but it can work well if you meet on the telephone or on the internet. Any way that you can share ideas in a supportive environment can be very useful.

But how many doctors would be willing to do this? Is there a built-in resistance amongst doctors about admitting vulnerability and not being able to cope with something or needing to discuss future plans in a non-judgmental environment?

Being part of a group is commonplace for doctors especially when discussing clinical decisions. Could it become more often used too as a way to talk about personal development and also emotional issues in relation to dealing with patients? Not the diagnosis and treatment but more about how they deal with the emotional impact of dealing with patients.